While Zithembe certainly doesn't enjoy being scorched he's able to put the pain aside as he channels the spirit of the hunt to aid himself and his allies. He steps up and swings his naginata at Zheng who manages to duck the blow.
Unfortunately, this leaves Zheng wide open to Maria's arrow which buries itself deeply into the center of his chest. Zheng drops like a rock, without even having had the chance to register surprise!
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Round 1
Jiang Fei
Yue Xin
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Rumble
Zithembe
Maria
Hepsubia
Active Conditions: None
Hepsubia is UP!
For a brief moment Hepsubia considers firing upon Jianghong, the coward who sends others to fight in his place. But then she reconsiders, deciding that having to live with the guilt is plenty punishment enough. Instead, she whips around and fires her arrow at Yue Xin and scores a solid hit as the arrow sinks into the bureaucrat's thigh!
"Well...that certainly wasn't what I taught you but good technique just the same," Jiang Fei remarks as she steps up to engage Zithembe. She looks a little pale after witnessing Maria and her bow in action but it doesn't deter her entirely as she throws a flurry of punches at the shabti...
...and wallops him good right in the stomach, knocking the breath out of him for a moment! But Zithembe realizes that Jiang Fei seems to be pulling her punches and striking to incapacitate rather than to kill.
Wincing and grimacing with pain, Yue Xin begins casting a spell and then points at Rumble with a shaky hand and commands - "Run away!"
It's a Command spell.
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Round 2
Jiang Fei
Yue Xin
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Rumble
Zithembe
Maria
Hepsubia
Active Conditions: None
Everyone is UP!
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Maria lets out a gasp as her arrow drills her target and he drops dead, "I um... I've never been that good with this weapon er... Crap! UGH WHY DID YOU HAVE TO ATTACK US WITH LETHAL FORCE! COULDN'T IT JUST HAVE BEEN LIKE A CHALLENGE OR SOMETHING? Jeeze I hope it was worth dying for."
Noticing the martial artist master is trying to keep things a bit less lethal, she moves over and fires a blunt arrow at her, "there, at least that is a bit more reasonable. We don't need to kill you all..."
for Current AC 17/13/14
Zithembe takes a swipe at Jiang Fei with his weapon as she moves up to deliver her punch isn't quite fast enough to catch her. But he's not down yet, taking a step back and giving as good (or a little better, actually) as he got as he strikes Jiang Fei in the ribs with the haft of his weapon instead of the blade!
Surprised and a little horrified by her own strength and accuracy Maria vents her frustration at the situation as she tries to take a more lenient approach with Jiang Fei. Unfortunately the archer is still a bit rattled, causing the shot to miss its mark.
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Round 2
Jiang Fei
Yue Xin
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Rumble
Zithembe
Maria
Hepsubia
Active Conditions: None
Rumble and Hepsubia are UP!
Lacking blunt arrows herself Hepsubia tries to figure out how to pull her punches with a bow, quickly realizing that the only two ways to do so are to miss entirely or perhaps beat the target with the bow.
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Round 2
Jiang Fei
Yue Xin
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Rumble
Zithembe
Maria
Hepsubia
Active Conditions: None
Rumble is UP!
Offended by this whole matter Rumble shrugs off Yue Xin's magic and swings Sledge around at Jiang Fei, smashing the weapon into her knee. With a startled cry she staggers and collapses to the ground, the combination of pain and lingering weakness from Zithembe's blow overcoming her!
Now looking a little worried, Yue Xin takes a step forward and adopts a defensive position as he begins casting another spell. He flicks his hands...
...and a spray of bright colors washes over Rumble and Zithembe!
Colorspray, whee!
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Round 3
Jiang Fei
Yue Xin
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Rumble
Zithembe
Maria
Hepsubia
Active Conditions: None
Everyone is UP!
Although Yue Xin's magic proves effective against Zithembe, sending the shabti collapsing to the ground, Rumble resists thanks to sheer dwarven stubbornness. He steps up and cracks the riddle-spouting bureaucrat across the jaw with Sledge, leaving Yue Xin reeling and barely on his feet! Then Maria ties a neat bow on the entire mess by clonking him with a blunt arrow, knocking him out cold!
Hoping that there might still be a chance to save Zheng's life Hepsubia rushes over to the fallen bodyguard and frantically works to stabilize him. Jianghong looks on, hands raised in surrender.
"I give up, I give up! Just...just do what you can for Zheng, okay? Please," the young student begs.
Although Maria's bow shot did come perilously close to Zheng's heart he is still alive, just barely. Hepsubia manages to stop the bleeding and save his life, though it's a very close call - only a few seconds more and he'd have certainly finished bleeding out. It also doesn't take long for the effects of the Color Spray to wear off from Zithembe.
Song Rui, having observed the battle from the sidelines, slowly manifests into sharper view as she looks around. "I am impressed! The four of you fight well together. But I am curious, what will you do with these four since you've chosen to spare their lives?"
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Hoping that this will teach them a lesson about pride and greed. Hoping that will teach us a lesson too, about the value of human life. A peaceful solution should be sought first, before we use violence. And we have to remember that someone who fight us might, under other circumstances, be a friend or an ally.
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It takes a long time for Zithembe to rouse and almost as long before he does anything other than stare blankly into the sky.
"Hope is good," the shabti says. "But when it comes to battle, pragmatism is important. Take their weapons, take Yue Xin's materials, and let them make their own way home. However, to be fair to our allies turned enemies, they did attempt a peaceful solution before resorting to violence."
He concentrates for a moment, and his eyes transform into emerald. Those standing near him feel a sense of mothering, birds building nests, foraging for their chicks, a rabbit suckling her kits. He then speaks a few words of power and eases the wounds on his body.
Even though the wounds heal, the process seems to have taken something out of him as he releases the spirits.
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Maria drops to her knees as the adrenaline rush fades, then she sees the little punk surrendering and charges him swinging her bow and whipping him senseless as she screams with tears on her eyes, "YOU DID THIS! YOU MADE ME KILL HIM!!! You... idiot! How could you make your friend fight like that? AND FIGHT US!?! I SAVED YOUR LIFE!!!"
She collapses sobbing, "I've never killed a person before... I mean it made sense logically if I was being attacked to fight all out... but I just. It's so much worse. He's dead, because of me."
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Rumble runs to tackle Maria to the ground as she begins to berate the boy. Holding on to her as tightly as he can, he shouts into her ear. "Zheng made ih, Zheng made ih!" Once she has appeared to calm down, he loosens his grip and gets up.
"Fortunately, nobody died, buh if any o' ya wanna die a warrior instead o' goin' home defeated, aye 'ave no problem grantin' ya tha wish," he offers while dusting the dirt from his clothes.
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*Sniff*
Maria looks up and over at Hep working on Zheng, "what? No I killed him, right? I saw the arrow go right through his heart and... how can he be alive after that?"
Now very curious she stands and walks over, tears beginning to dry. Kneeling down she looks really closely at the injury and the arrow now that it has been removed. She checks his chest and notices an embedded charm jammed into his flesh at the site of the wound, "well that lucky... it must have deflected the arrow just enough to miss piercing his heart!"
She stands and turns to the boy, "LUCKY! YOU ARE SO FREAKING LUCKY. If you want to live your life like that, fine. But know this. It will run out someday and hurt you or... the ones you love. Learn from your mistakes or you'll lose the chance... I know I will.""
The elf picks up her bow mumbling, "there has gotta be a better way to knock someone out than blunt arrows. I'll have to ask at the temple next time."
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Hepsubia wipes her blood stained hands on whatever is left of her trousers, as she used part of her own clothes to bandage the grieviously wounded man. She then awkwardly extend her arms to invite Maria into a hug, trying to keep her hands out
It wasn't your fault, really, Maria. The man will be living, and I guess he will have a few choice words to the Young "Master" who send him into a fight he couldn't win, and never asked for a truce to tend to his faithful servant's wounds. Maybe a good, firm spanking will be in order. I'd be happy to see that, in fact.
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I don't know what the issue here is... Your first kill can be... emotional, but what do you expect when you enter into a battle? There are no kiddy gloves in a real fight. Besides, it is an honor to die a warrior fighting for your cause. Much better than dying in a soft bed at any rate. Rumble raises an eyebrow at his Elven companions, but otherwise keeps his mouth shut for the moment.
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Maria asks Zith, "how exactly do three unconscious people make their own way home? We just leave them to maybe be eaten by a bear or die from blood loss? The whelp over there obviously can't do anything. And as you said, they were our allies. One single lapse of judgement and now they aren't worth our time? They could be allies again someday, who knows. I mean, I can't be the only one thinking about doing the right thing, right?"
"Perhaps one or more of them are carrying restoratives on their person?" Song Rui calmly suggests. "If so, use their own supplies to mend their wounds. It seems only fair, after all, since they lost the battle. After the beating that you just administered I would be incredibly surprised if they wished to challenge you further!"
A quick perusal of Yue Xin, Jiang Fei, and Zheng's belongings does in fact yield several items that could be of use: a scroll of Share Language, two scrolls of Cure Light Wounds, a wand of Comprehend Languages, two potions of Cure Light Wounds, and two flasks of Acid. There's also an array of mundane gear, weapons, and armor. Zheng also seems to be carrying a regular set of manacles.
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Maria takes the advice of the not-ghost spirit lady and rifles through pockets, storing any weapons in her pack and handing out the scrolls and wand to be identified. She shackles Zheng to a tree, pocketing the key and then pours the two potions down his throat .
If he rouses she makes sure he wishes them no harm and unlocks his manacles, "you better get your ward under control sir. You might not survive the next scuffle he signs you up for. It was close enough this time." If he shows signs of being aggressive, she leaves him chained up.
She checks over the other two, to make sure they will wake up within a few hours . Maria stands and slings her pack over her shoulder, "shall we go? I'm satisfied they will be fine."
Though Zheng is (understandably) initially a little groggy and confused once he's brought around, he quickly assures Maria and the rest of you that he has no desire for any further entanglements.
"Go home, back to Lingshen," he nods vigorously, then winces a little as the motion elicits a flare of pain from his remaining wounds. He then shoots Jianghong a rather dark look. "A long trip but plenty of time for talking."
The student opens his mouth to say something but swiftly snaps it shut again as Zheng continues to glower at him.
"Don't know who those two are but we will watch them until they wake," Zheng continues, nodding his head to indicate the still-unconscious Jiang Fei and Yue Xin. "Not allies but not enemies, either. Not really."
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Maria reassures herself that Jiang Fei and Yue Xin will live through their ordeal, suffering nothing more than some bruises and damaged pride, while the rest of you ready yourselves to continue your journey back to Ashima. Zheng and Jianghong help to move the unconscious man and woman into the shade of some nearby rocks, where they too settle down to wait and rest up.
"Good fight," Zheng agrees, shaking Rumble's hand. "No hard feelings, either - best group won, after all. Be careful out there."
And with that, you once more turn your steps towards Ashima. The rest of the return journey is blessedly uneventful and before you know it you find yourselves back in the now-quite-familiar town. As you stride up the path towards Mai Chun's house you can see her outside in the garden, apparently taking a break from whatever scholarly pursuits she's currently engaged in. When she sees the four of you, her face lights up and then seems to flicker between relief and nervous anticipation.
"You return once more!" Mai Chun calls out as she moves to greet you. "And still in one piece, wonderful, wonderful! Did you...did you find it? The Summer Palace?" she asks anxiously.
The next few hours following your return to Ashima are a blur; Mai Chun is overjoyed when you present her with the bejeweled scroll case as is the entire town. A great celebration is held in the town's temple square in honor of your triumph that lasts well into the evening, filled with much drinking, dancing, and conversation. Even Song Rui participates, flitting awkwardly about and answering questions posed to her by some of the awestruck townsfolk. Mai Chun in particular seems to get on quite well with the phantom princess and seems to delight in trading poetic couplets with her.
When it's all said and done, in addition to the friendship of Mai Chun and the people of Ashima you receive from a representative of the Sun Shogun a reward of 3,000 gold pieces and access to a store of magical talismans. Even your superiors in the Society itself seem quite impressed with your find, once word gets back to them of your success!
But great success also breeds great expectations. Only a few days after your return to Ashima you receive a missive from Venture-Captain Amara Li that bids you journey to Hisuikarasu, capital of the tengu nation of Kwanlai to take on a new assignment of great importance. The exact nature of this new assignment isn't stated - to the surprise of no one - but you are given a name and a place:
Zepha
The Golden Lotus Tea House
It isn't much to go on but that seems to be typical Society protocol in many cases. And so after making your preparations you bid goodbye to Mai Chun and Song Rui and strike out for Hisuikarasu, curious as to what the winds of fate have in store for you this time....
A light breeze wafts in through the windows of a private room in the Golden Lotus Teahouse, bringing with it the sound of chirping birds. Heat radiates from the small stove sunken into the floor in the center of the room. It is here that you were instructed to wait upon your arrival, being told that Zepha would be with you shortly.
In addition to yourselves there is another individual seated in the room with you and was in fact already waiting when you arrived. Before the silence gets too awkward, perhaps introductions are in order...
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"...Suppose aye'll go first then," Rumble says as he climbs upon the table, but not before clearing ample space for his space. Me Ma raised me right, she did! "Mah name is Rumble Craterkin, an' aye am a faithful servant o'," he begins, pausing to fill his lungs with as much air as Dwarvenly possible. "" he bellows into the ceiling, raising his impressive warhammer in the air.
"Oh, an' this is Sledge. Ain't he sumthin?" he asks rhetorically as he scoots off of the table, moving everything back where he found it. "Ahright, now who's next?!"
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Standing behind and being caught up in the exuberance, Maria echo's the dwarf's cry of "TORAG!" She glances at her allies with a shrug, "what, it's only prudent to have Torag on our side, plus Rumble really seems to enjoy his worship, you have to appreciate that."
She turns to the newcomer, noticing that he appears to be a pathfinder and putting two and two together. "Welcome to the mission Sir, I am Maria Kuerlara of Kyonin. I look forward to working with you." She gives a short formal bow.
Maria is taller, but not exactly towering over an average human at exactly six feet. Her frame is thin and lithe, covered by simple clothing and few accoutrements. The clothing is obviously tailored to cover most of her skin, but not restrain movement. Visible under the shirt is a form fitting shiny chain link shirt. Her dirty blonde hair is bound tightly into a bun with a few strands falling down and framing her long pointed ears. No makeup and a pale complexion allow her to not catch many beings attention, which is useful for her research. A single bow, full quiver and simple backpack are slung over her shoulders.
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The chirping of the birds outside of the teahouse soothed the pang of homesickness that circled within the stomach of the brown-eyed, brown-haired man sitting in the room. The copper coin he moved between the fingers of his right hand gave silent betrayal of his nervousness. Less than a year away from his thirtieth winter, the anticipation of things to come made him feel half his age.
It had been months since he'd returned from the mountains of Varisia and Wrathwarped Hall. The lack of missions from the Pathfinder Society had not deterred the young Sarenite acolyte from wandering the southern countries of Avistan proselytizing the vitures of the Dawnflower while tending to those in need of the blessings of his goddess. When he was summoned back to Absalom and given instructions to travel to Tian Xia and his current location to receive further briefing, he not been able to keep the wonder of being assigned a destination far beyond the reaches of the Inner Sea.
The sounds of footsteps snapped the man out of his quiet recollections as his gaze turned toward the open door. Without comment, his questioning eyes fell upon a group of individuals as they entered the room. Looking at each person, he quickly noted that everyone in the newly arrived quartet was looking right at him. In each of their eyes, he saw inner calculations of perceived assessment.
A moment of awkward silence hung over the occupants within the room until the dwarf introduced himself first while showing off the hefty looking warhammer he carried in his hand. When the young woman echoed the dwarf's exultation of Torag, his guarded expression became one of satiable curiousity. After her introduction and subsequent bow, he slowly rose to his feet, almost matching the woman in height. He wore a long white chasuble and tunic with red and gold decorations depicting the sun. A wooden angelic ankh hung from his neck and a scimitar was fixed to his side by a belt around his waist.
"I'm Parison Drakemoor", he replied in a quiet, soft-spoken voice. "I serve the one who brings the dawn to Golarian each day." As he spoke, he raised his right hand up to the collar of his tunic. As he turned the collar outward, the sunbeams from a nearby window glint off of a pin securely fastened there. Unlike the one around his neck, the upper portion of this small ankh sprouted points from its upper portion.
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Is this a riddle? Can I play?
I'll say... Sarenae! It wasn't too hard... May I have another?
The slender elf woman was alternatively reading and writing in a small book, sitting cross legged in a corner of the room
Nice to meet you, Parison, and welcome. My name is Hepsubia Althein.
Her clothes are neutral and a little loose, and her dark hair are tied in small breads. A well used (but good quality) backpack is on the floor, by her side, and there's a bow, a quiver and a longsword not too far from her, resting on the nearby wall.
The elf streches, put the book down and rises, smiling
So many things to learn...So many places to go. It's nice to be a Pathfinder.
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The living shabti made out of supernaturally supple but apparently literal jade raises a hairless eyebrow at Rumble's enthusiastic declaration. He waits until the tea house has settled, the ripples in his tea fade, and the birds outside resume their chirping before speaking, "Welcome, Parison. I am Zithembe, and I follow the way of the open road."
With perfect timing a bird-headed man with black feathers enters, carrying a large, heavy-looking kettle on the edge of a gnarled wooden staff. In a fluid, graceful motion, he sweeps the end of his staff in an arc and sets the kettle upon the stove. His eyes glow from within with golden light, and they twinkle as he softly speaks.
"Welcome. Please, join me for tea."
This individual is a preceptor archon, a lawful good being that hails from Heaven itself.
He then produces several sets of matcha teaware and begins to methodically clean them. As he does, he asks, "Tell me a little about yourselves, esteemed travelers. Each of you belong to the Pathfinder Society but just as the Society itself is a multifaceted entity, so too are those that belong to it. What spurred you to take up such a life?"
As the bird-headed man - who surely must be Zepha - works at cleaning the teaware it becomes clear that he's preparing an elaborate tea ceremony. It might impress your host if you're able to follow the steps and participate properly...
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"Zepha?" the shabti asks, largely rhetorically. "I did not expect to meet an archon on this mission."
He smiles and begins to follow along with the tea ceremony, apparently with no difficulty. "After the nosoi discovered me serving my master's sentence in the Abyss and the yamaraj declared me free, and after a century in Axis contemplating the meaning of being a creature of free will, I chose to come to the Material Plane. After many miles, I met a shaitan who introduced me to a new way at looking at the self. He introduced me to a dwarf, and the dwarf introduced me to an oread, and the oread introduced me to a human. Now I continue my exploration."
Zithembe has little trouble in following along with Zepha's preparations, watching the bird-man as he finishes cleaning the teaware and begins preparing the tea itself. He knows the proper step to take once the tea is ready to be served and is able to give a very honest and straightforward answer to Zepha's question.
"Interesting...very interesting," Zepha muses as he begins scooping matcha into the kettle. "In one sense you have already traveled far and seen much...and yet in another, your journey has only barely begun."
He pauses and glances up to meet the shabti's gaze. "Your steadfastness in your exploration of the self is commendable but heed your surroundings, always. Those who walk with their eyes only focused on the self are sure to stumble."
As Zepha returns his gaze to his tea-making, Hepsubia smoothly passes off any possible awkwardness as simply being a bit rusty on proper technique. With three scoops of matcha now added to the kettle Zepha adds a small amount of hot water and begins to whisk the ingredients together to form a thin paste. This affords Zepha another moment to lift his gaze and settle his eyes on the wily elven woman.
"I find beauty in your honesty," he remarks softly. "One of the highest of virtues. And yet you should know that the highest towers are often the most unstable. A heart filled with beautiful virtue is separated from a heart filled with ugly arrogance by the thinnest of veils. You must always be on guard, lest that tower crumble to dust."
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Rumble can't help but gawk a little (but actually a lot) at the glowing eyed bird. "Do them birdpeople's eyes always glow like ah sun at noon?" he asks Maria as discreetly as a Dwarf can.
Fortunately for him, Zithembe identifies Zepha as an Archon, easing his delicate Dwarven sensibilities. Unfortunately, when it comes to prissy tea ceremonies, there isn't enough delicacy or discretion in Rumble to save him from embarrassment. "Tha's a lotta work fur some tea, eh? Why don't ya jus' pour ih an drink ih? Aye can show ya if ya like, much fasta!" he offers, reaching out for the tea making equipment. When it immediately becomes excruciatingly clear that the offer is not appreciated, he pulls his hands back and simply waits to be served some tea. Damn tea and their damn fancy pouring things. Who's got time to waste on tea like that? Isn't there a forge to be tending to somewhere?
"Aye joined tha Society tah learn more abouh blacksmithin an' hittin' dangerous things with Sledge!" he declares proudly, and just a little eager to push the attention away from his apparent faux pas. "An' aye do all this in tha name o' tha glorious," he pauses and begins moving stuff out of his way again, but the looks he receives from his companions suggest now isn't the time to scream on a table. "Er, tha glorious TORAG!" he exclaims, settling for an earnest but much more "indoor voice" volume. Never again am I taking a meeting in a bloody teahouse. At least last time we went to a teahouse we got to start a fight!
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Maria thinks to herself, Hmmm, so that is what a Tengu looks like in person, interesting. But when Zith adds that the creature is an Archon she just gets confused, Is that an Archon in the shape of a Tengu or is that just what all Archon's look like. Crap!
She gives a short bow to Zepha, "well it's all about knowledge, right? I was a useful fighter in my homeland, but that life seemed restrictive. I wanted to seek out more information about all things, maybe even find a way to end the war my people face. I've traveled a great deal in my life and then ran across the Pathfinder Society and saw a great opportunity to do some good and continue learning."
Maria remembers a Religious tea ritual and follows it perfectly, unfortunately it was not the correct Religion. She apologizes with each misstep, "I'm sorry, I'm just not doing this right. What was the correct action?"
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Sitting in silence, Parison closely observed his fellow agents and listened to their answers and got to know a little more about them in the process and draw his own conclusions about why they were a part of the Pathfinder Society. Zithembe's journey of self-discovery had brought the shabti to the group and for the moment, both her path and the organization's ran in the same direction.
The dwarf was a much simpler read. Rumble wanted to learn more of his craft, but there seemed to be a desire to fight without the yoke of militant organization. At least with the Pathfinders, the former concept was rare in presence.
As Maria vocalized her desire to learn more about the world and that which lay within it, Parison surreptitiously gave her a nod of respect. Every day should be a chance to learn something and within the respect, a small thought of envy in knowing that she learn so much more in her lifetime than he could ever know in his.
The only one of the group he couldn't draw a conclusion on was Hepsubia but only for the reason that she seemed to be as guarded as he was about giving others an open window into who he was. The clinking of teaware snapped him out of his appraisal of his fellow agents and brought him back to the present situation. Realizing that it would be rude to not at least make an honest attempt to participate with their host, Parison followed Maria and Zithembe's leads, trying not to duplicate any miscues.
Forgive me if my eyes stay on you took long," he speaks as he goes through the proper motions of preparing for the tea ceremony. "I've never seen an archon before, but in fairness, there are many who will never have such an opportunity while they live." His mind drifted back to his childhood as he tried to give credence to his membership with the Pathfinder Society. "I lost my Ma and Da when I was quite young and I became a ward of the city of Absalom. There was a boy there in the orphanage where I was placed, Dougal, that bullied the other children. I had a woodcarving my Da had made for me of Iomadae and Dougal wanted it. He and two of his friends beat me up and broke it when I wouldn't give it to him. They escaped punishment because no one else saw them do it and they lied for each other. Two days later, a girl at the orphanage, Ciara, cornered Dougal in the jake and nearly beat him to death with a bean pole. I don't know why she did it," he added, looking around at the others, "and I never got the chance to ask because she was removed from the orphanage after that. She was smaller than I was and Dougal was almost twice her size. But for what reason, Ciara stood up for me. She did what was right and I've never forgotten that."
Parison takes a breath. "It made me want to do that. Help others in need and always do the right thing, even if it means sometimes going against the grain. There are a lot of faiths in the world that preach that doctrine, but Saerenrae stood out in that she urges us all to do good, but to do so in the name of compassion instead of justice, law, or protection. I do that for her and being in the Society gives me a way of being able to do that and be her spokesperson in reaching out to others in need," he finished, unconsciously caressing the Silver Crusade pin on his collar.
Zepha continues to prepare the tea as the rest of you speak in turn, sharing a small bit of yourselves with him and with each other as you answer the question he's put forth.
"Patience, Child of the Stone," Zepha remarks, a hint of amusement creeping into his soft voice. "Sometimes the journey is just as important as the destination. This is true of many things...and why should tea not be one of them?"
With the tea now ready, Zepha takes the kettle and offers it to the dwarf. "You seek to grow more learned in your craft and stronger in body in the name of Torag. I believe you will do him proud, Child of the Stone. But remember that even Torag does not always rely on direct assault and brute strength alone when it comes to solving a problem. After all, he is the consummate planner, is he not?"
Noticing that Rumble doesn't seem to be sure of how to proceed with the ceremony, Zepha then instructs, "Please rotate the kettle in your hands and then drink of the tea, being sure to wipe the rim before passing it to your companion."
Once Rumble has done as instructed, Maria finds herself with the kettle being passed her way. Zepha studies her carefully, then speaks. "I see...you largely seek knowledge for knowledge's sake, or at least you once did. A very balanced approached. And balance is a fine thing, for without shadows we would be unable to appreciate the light."
"And yet, while it would seem that perhaps you have come to this realization, it should always be remembered that when one chooses to observe cruelty without taking action, the sin becomes their own. Some," he nods at Parison, "learn this earlier than others," Zepha finishes as the kettle is passed around through the rest of the group. Each of you take a drink, wiping the rim of the kettle before passing it to the next person.
Once everyone has partaken of the tea, Zepha begins to methodically clean the kettle and teaware that he used in preparing it. When everything is clean once more, he looks expectantly at Maria...who can't quite remember what the next step is. "Now you will each inspect the kettle and other instruments and hand them back to me once this step is complete," he calmly guides.
While the rest of the group begin taking their turns inspecting the kettle and instruments Zepha turns at last to Parison. "Priest of the Dawn, your flame burns bright and pure. You seek to right the wrongs of this world but remember that a flame that hurries to consume its fuel burns brightly...and will soon go out. Protect the flame that burns within you, so that your light does not go out too soon."
With everyone now having inspected the kettle and tea instruments, Zepha receives them from Parison...who then offers a small bow of respect for your host, as is proper. The rest of you follow his lead, concluding the tea ceremony.
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"I suppose that now we should discuss why I made a request of young Venture-Captain Li," Zepha remarks. "There is a certain shrine near the southern border of Kwanlai that I would like you to visit. Its keepers are tasked with leading pure lives and standing vigil over a place where evil gathers, and I regret that it has been some time since they last sent their usual report to Heaven."
"I’d like you to ascertain the status of the shrine and investigate why we haven’t heard from them. You had best start by visiting the village of Yiangma. It’s a charming town in the mountains near the shrine that the keepers rely upon for supplies and new disciples. Its people aren’t used to seeing visitors who aren’t tengu, so they may be a bit cautious with you at first," the archon explains. "Let the town’s mayor know of your intentions and see if he has any information to share with you before venturing to the shrine itself. With luck, this is merely a bureaucratic issue and nothing more."